Bittersweet
by Lithedragon
Summary: High School AU/ Nico and Percy like each other from the moment they met, but they're just friends, right?
1. Chapter 1

Annabeth rushed toward her next class, which was two halls and up a flight of stairs away. She had two minutes, and she had never been late for class before. She raced up a stairwell and turned a corner, slamming straight into a young boy-probably a freshman- and falling over.

"Oh gods. I'm so sorry. Are you all right, I'm sorry. I'm late."

The boy glanced up at her from the floor where he was picking up his stuff and shoving it back into a black bag. He had long dark vaguely curly hair, which framed his pale face. he looked like he hadn't slept in weeks. But his eyes. They were dark brown, almost black, but you could see years of pain and misery behind them. A look of desperation, like he was hoping for something to forget whatever happened to make him that way.

"I'm fine. Here are your books. You should get to class. 30 seconds."

"While Annabeth had been staring, the boy had gathered her books and stood up. He was so small, Annabeth wondered why the collision hadn't broken every bone in his body. She recognized him.

"Thank you. I'm Annabeth Chase. You have the same lunch as me." She smiled at him.

"Nico di Angelo. I know. You're the girl who likes books." He walked off, and Annabeth hurried to class.

Percy climbed out of the pool and shook his unruly black hair out of his face. He grabbed a towel and dried his hair, then went to change. He had 5 minutes until his next class. He should hurry if he wanted to get there on time. As he was walking out of the locker room he noticed a book laying on the bench.

_Property of: Nico di Angelo_

Percy put the book in his bag. He was pretty sure he had lunch with Nico. He would give him the book then.

Nico was unnerved by the encounter with Annabeth that morning. He vaguely knew the blonde, she was in his lunch, and she usually sat with some other boy who really liked blue and green. He had lunch in a few minutes, and he was getting ready to throw his books in his bag and run, when he realized that his math book was missing. Great, now he would probably get a detention or something. The bell rang and he went to lunch.

Percy ran from his class toward the cafeteria. It was Taco Tuesday. He slowed to a walk and walked into the cafeteria. He got his food and set it down next to Annabeth.

"Hi Perce, how's it going?" She said, not even looking up from her architecture book.

"Hi Annabeth, I'm fine. Do you know where Nico di Angelo is?"

Annabeth looked up in shock. Why was Nico popping up everywhere today?

"Um, why? Did you run into him too?"

"What? No, I found his math book in the locker room during my free period. Do you see him?"

"He's over in the corner there." Annabeth gestured towards a corner away from everyone else where a dark hairedd boy sat alone.

"Thanks. I'll be right back, and you can tell me about running into him."

Percy walked over to Nico, but the boy didn't even look up.

"Are you Nico di Angelo?" He asked.

"Yeah, why?" said the boy, looking up at him. The first thing Percy noticed was his eyes. Filled with sorrow and hate, desperation, this boy had been through some rough shit through his life.

"I found your math book in the locker room today", said Percy as he handed Nico the book.

"Thank you, I was looking for this." Nico managed a small smile as he put the book in his bag.

Percy was still there, and Nico started feeling uncomftorble.

"Come sit with Annabeth and me. " He said, and Nico glanced back up, shocked that somebody would sit with him.

"I'm not really a people person" he startedd to say.

"That's okay. Neither is Annabeth. I can talk enough for the both of you, though. Come on, please?"

Nico sighed and followed Percy back to his table.

"Annabeth, look! Nico's gonna sit with us! Okay? Okay."

Annabeth glanced up and smiled at Nico.

"Hey, Nico."

"Hi." Nico mumbled as he sat across from her. Percy sat next to him.

"What do you like?"Nico didn't realize the question was aimed at him until he looked up and saw Annabeth looking at him over the top of her book.

"Um, what?"

"What do you like, Nico? For music."

"Oh, um I like Imagine Dragons…Hollywood Undead…. Green day… Stuff like that."

"Okay, what about books?"

"I don't really read. I'm not…like that."

"You don't read?" Annabeth practically yelled. "Reading is fundamental to understand and comprehend new things. Reading is awesome. What do you do all day if you don't read?"

Nico shrank back in his seat.

"Annabeth, calm down! Reading may be fundamental, but you're just mental. Lots of people don't like reading. Maybe he writes."

Annabeth sat down and looked over at Percy.

"Sorry Nico, I just… really like reading."

"Apparently." Nico muttered, and Percy laughed.

"So you two knew each other?" Percy asked.

"I ran into him on my way to class. Literally."

"Oh, wow. Good job with that, Annabeth. Ramming into poor innocent high schoolers."

"I apologized!"

Just then, the bell rang and students started getting up.

"Bye, Nico! Bye Perce!" Annabeth was the second person to leave the cafeteria.

"Damn, she moves fast. Bet it hurt when she hit you. Where's your next class?"

" Upstairs. Room E-4."

"I'll walk you. Come on."

" What about your class?"

"It's a study hall. Come on."

Nico and Percy walked to Nico's next class, but Percy couldn't help but look at him. Nico's black hair was longer than Percy's, and it framed his face, swinging back as he walked.

"Why is your hair so long, Neek?"

"Because it grows. Does your's not?" Percy laughed, and Nico smiled.

"My hair grows, but my mother makes me cut it. Are you just allowed to grow out your hair however you want it?"

"My parents don't care." The small italian boy said. They had arrived at his classroom.

"Thanks for walking me and letting me sit with you."

"Anytime. You are my new friend, Nico di Angelo."

They exchanged numbers and Nico walked inside the classroom. As, he was walking away, Percy wondered if Nico's parents cared at all. Nico was so lonely. Didn't they notice when he needed a trim or wasn't happy? Percy decided even if his parents didn't care, he would.

So that's chapter one, guys! Hope you liked!

_DaughterofHades268_


	2. Chapter 2

Percy walked into his apartment after school, throwing his bag in his room and grabbing a snack. His mom wasn't home yet, so he took advantage of the cotton candy ice cream in the freezer and sat down to work on his homework. He was supposed to meet Annabeth at the mall today at 4. He thought about it for a minute, and then texted Annabeth.

_Should we invite Nico?_

He got back to schoolwork and almost instantly was interrupted by his phone going off.

_I wish we could, but I don't have his number on my phone._

_I do,_ Percy texted back,_ I'll text him and ask._

He looked up Nico in his contacts and then texted and asked about the mall. Nico responded a minute later, saying he'd be there.

Percy looked at the pile of schoolwork. If he wanted to get to the mall, he better get started.

_Hey Nico, wanna come to the mall with me and Annabeth 4:00? We're meeting at the froYo store at the east end._

Nico texted Percy back, saying he'd meet them there. His schoolwork was done, his room was kind of clean, and he had money. He could go. His parents didn't notice or care. He walked out of his bedroom and out the door. He'd get to the mall early, and wander around till four.

At 4, Percy showed up to the FroYo store with Annabeth in tow. Nico noticed him from across the room and stood up. Percy ran over to him and hugged him.

"Nico, we're gonna have so much fun! We're going to the arcade, and the comic book store, and the pretzel stand, and-"

"Percy. We're at a mall, I'm sure Nico expects to go to places in the mall. Also, I don't think he can breathe."

Percy let go of Nico, blushing and just looking sheepish. He looked good in his teal sweatshirt and jeans. Nico cursed himself for thinking that. He couldn't let it happen again. They left the FroYo shop, and started walking towards the arcade, but Annabeth pulled them into every bookstore there was. She would walk around, taking every interesting book off the shelf, reading a bit, and then putting it back so it took her fifteen minutes just to go through one store. Nico and Percy would glance at a couple of books and then go to the stores around the bookstore until they saw Annabeth waiting for them at the entrance.

They made their way down to the arcade like this, joking and laughing. Well Annabeth and Percy were, Nico just hung back a bit and laughed at a couple of jokes. When they got to the arcade, Annabeth got quarters and split them up between the three of them. Nico went towards Pac-Man, while Annabeth and Percy played Air hockey. After a while, Nico went to go watch them. Annabeth saw someone she knew across the arcade.

"Nico, here. Play with Percy while I talk to Rachel." She shoved the thingy that you use to hit the puck into his hand and ran off.

"I am going to beat you, you know. Annabeth is the only person I have ever met who can beat me, and that's a rare occasion." He smiled at Nico and put the coins in. The air came up, and he threw down the puck.

Nico turned out to be pretty good at air hockey, and by the time Annabeth came back, Nico had beaten him twice. Percy looked amazed each time.

"Annabeth he beat me! In air hockey! Nico beat me in air hockey!" Annabeth laughed, although Percy looked like he was about to cry, he started laughing too. They spent the rest of the day wandering around, until Annabeth had to go home and babysit her brothers. Percy and Nico walked out of the mall and sat on a bench.

"Sorry Annabeth had to go home early, Neek. Her stepmom kinda hates her and forces her to babysit."

"It's okay."

Percy looked over at Nico, admiring the younger boy. Nico seemed so strong, like he could handle anything life threw at him.

"Do you want me to walk you home? You look tired." Percy wondered how much sleep Nico got at home.

"I'm fine. I can walk places myself you know, and it's a long walk."

"It's night in NYC. I'm not letting you walk home alone." They started walking back towards Nico's house, talking about random things, or just not talking, enjoying being with each other, even if they would never say that aloud. When they got to Nico's apartment, Nico turned to face Percy.

"Thanks for inviting me to the mall and walking me home."

"No problem, Nico. Thanks for coming. I know you don't like people."

Just then, an ocean sound came out of Percy's pocket.

"Damn. I got to go Nico. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Bye."

Nico watched as Percy began running down the road, watching him until he disappeared.

Percy got home right after the clock in the church at the end of his road struck nine.

"Percy, I've been worried! Leave a note next time, and you know curfews 8:30 unless you have permission."

"Sorry Mom, I was talking to my new friend Nico. He went to the mall with me and Annabeth today. I walked him home because Annabeth had to leave early."

"Okay, Perce, I believe you. Now, it's a school night. Come eat and then you can go to bed."

Percy ate his food, showered, and the crawled into bed. He lay there for a while thinking about Nico.

_He wears a lot of black. _

Percy wondered why he looked so…broken.

Nico crawled into bed, trying to sleep, but he couldn't. He just kept thinking of Percy. He always looked at him as if Nico were interesting, or worth his time. That didn't happen to Nico a lot. He started thinking about the pouty face that Percy made when Nico beat him at air hockey. He was really cute- no, Nico couldn't keep thinking like that. He had promised himself he wouldn't fall for another person like Percy. Someone who only cared as friends. He wouldn't fall for someone like that again. Nico turned over and fell asleep.


	3. Chapter 3

_**It's been like 2 or so weeks since the beginning**_

Percy ran into class the next morning, still groggy from waking up 10 minutes ago. His alarm had broken, so he woke up way too late. He slid into his seat, just as the teacher walked into the room. He breathed a sigh of relief and pulled his books out of his bag.

"Arken?"

"Here."

And so the day began.

************************** Nico di Angelo***************************************

Nico glanced at his watch, hoping for the class to end soon. His next class was a study hall, which he spent in the library anyways. He leaned back in his chair. Ten more minutes of History, and then he would probably wander around the halls until he found an old classroom to hang out in. The bell rang, and Nico leapt up from his seat.

As he was rounding the corner during his study hall, he slammed into someone.

"Ow. Damn."

"Nico! Sorry, I didn't see you there!" Nico inwardly groaned. The one person he didn't want to bump into... alone...

"Hey Perce." He looked up at Percy, wishing the boy wasn't so tall. Then he realized that was because he was still sitting on the ground, and went to try and go through the process of pushing himself off the ground without looking stupid. All of a sudden, Nico saw a hand in front of him. He looked up at Percy, who was starting to look kind of sheepish about the whole encounter.

"Thanks." He said, grabbing Percy's hand and pulling himself up. He tried to avoid looking at Percy, as he was blushing rather profusely.

"What are you doing right now?" Percy asked.

"Study hall. I usually spend it in an empty classroom."

"Same here. Well, not the whole 'empty classroom' thing, but I have one too. Which empty room are you going to?"

They chose one a few minutes later and just sat there in silence.

"What do you normally do during this 'alone in a classroom time'?"

"Read. Or I work on homework. Sometimes I fall asleep." Percy laughed.

"I thought you said you didn't read, Neek! Were you lying to me?" He put on a mock hurt face and Nico laughed.

"It was Annabeth."

"I can relate to that, Neek. She does come on strong. What do you read?"

"Um, mostly fantasy… sci-fi... I dunno." Nico looked at the ground. They were sitting behind the teacher's desk so if a passing teacher looked in, they wouldn't see them. Nico was aware of how close Percy was.

"Do you have a girlfriend, Nico?" Nico gasped. _What did he just say? Did I hear right?_

"I- I – no. I'm not… into girls." Percy smiled at him, and by now Nico was blushing so hard, he was surprised he wasn't on fire.

"I know. Well, I thought so. Do you have a boyfriend, then?"

"No. Who'd want to date me? I'm depressing. People don't notice me. And if they do, they don't care."

"I-"Percy didn't know what to do. Well, he knew what he wanted to do. He didn't know what he could do that wouldn't leave him dead behind a teachers desk. Nico was looking down at the ground, and he was…blushing? Percy didn't think Nico blushed.

"You're blushing, Neek. I didn't think you could blush." Percy teased, trying to cover up the awkward silence. Nico looked at him quickly, and then stood up.

"I have to go."

"Wait... Nico!" Percy stood up and ran after Nico as he walked out of the door. He caught up with him right outside the classroom.

"Nico." Percy grabbed his wrist. Nico stopped and turned around.

"Let go of me, Jackson." He struggled to free his wrist. Percy guided him back inside the classroom. He sat Nico back down on a desk.

"I'm sorry I teased. I didn't mean it. Stay here. We still have half an hour left."

"I'm not mad you teased me." Nico wouldn't look at him. His gazed was fixed on his black converse.

"Nico." Percy moved his face up so they were looking at each other.

_Nonononono. I can't do this. Not now, please... I want to leave. I can't do this…not again._

Percy leaned down.

"You two. What are you doing? Where are you supposed to be? Jackson, I expected better of you." The math teacher, Mr. Soans, leaned into the classroom.

"We'll talk later, Nico."

~ Line break~

After school, Percy headed to his apartment. His mom had made cookies and left a note on the fridge.

_Percy,_

_Gone with Paul until nine or ten, maybe longer if we find something else to do. Cookies for a snack, and leftovers for dinner. Feel free to invite someone over._

_Mom._

Percy smiled as he grabbed his phone and a blue cookie (white chocolate chip), and went into the living room.

_Nico,_

_Come over. We need to talk._

Percy texted Nico then went to shower and change. Nico would be there soon.

When Percy got out of the shower, Nico was sitting on his couch.

"Shit, Nico! I didn't know you were there." Nico stood and followed him into the kitchen, where he saw the plate of blue cookies.

"What's with the blue?"

"My old stepdad said blue food didn't exist. We started eating blue food just to annoy him. He left."

Nico laughed.

They sat down on the couch with cookies, and sat in awkward silence.

"These are some dam (ha) good cookies, man."

"Thanks, my mom is really into baking."

They sat for another few moments.

"Nico-"Percy said as Nico started to say his name.

"You first." They both said that.

"Same time?"

"Ok."

"1, 2, 3-"

"_I love you._"

Nico looked up from the couch, blushing.

"What?"

"Nico, I love you."

Percy looked right at Nico. He leaned in.

"I love you."

His lips gently brushed Nico's. Then Nico moved over to him. His lips crashed onto Percy's.

"I love you too."

Percy looked into Nico's eyes, and saw a glimmer of hope beneath all the gloom.

That was so cheesy omg like send help.

I'm sorry.

But, happy New Year.

Reviews, Anyone?

_DaughterofHades268_


	4. Update!

Hey guys! I am soooo sorry I haven't been posting lately... School just started up again and I'm still getting used to public school. I should be getting a new laptop this week or next week, so I will update soon. I just need to get my school laptop which is faster and super awesome. I'm so sorry that I haven't posted in forever! Love you guys! I will post soon, I promise!

-Li


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